The Rev. Bruce Smith

Retired; Priest associate at St. James, Columbus

Please reflect on your participation in the life of your congregation, the diocese, and the larger community:

I served for 12.5 years as the assistant priest at St. Mark’s, Columbus and retired in 2013. I also served monthly at Trinity, McArthur for 4 years. Now am Priest associate at St. James, Columbus and am active as a supply priest. I served on the Board of Episcopal Retirement Services in Cincinnati and currently serve on the Board of Bexley-Seabury Seminary in Chicago, coordinate two ongoing programs for Columbus area clergy and serve as ˝ of the supreme Coordinating Committee of Episcopal Night at the Symphony in the Columbus area. In the Diocese I have served on Diocesan Council twice and on the Diocesan Stewardship Commission for many years. I also was honored to serve on the Human Sexuality Study Commission which met for a year during a time of tension in our diocese. In the wider community I am a member of both the Columbus Torch Club and the Columbus Metropolitan Club. All these activities involve both serving and leading at some level, which I recognize as a gift and calling from God.

Why do you feel God is calling you to serve in this position?

It has been a number of years since I have served the church at the diocesan level, and I’ve been feeling the pull back into doing so. The Procter Center has always been a special place since I first spent time there for an overnight Vestry retreat about 20 years ago. God is very much present in that holy place. Watching Procter evolve and grow over the years has been a blessing to me. Procter is an important ministry of this Diocese, not only to Episcopalians but to the wider community as well. It is a tranquil place… a place that feels like home with a staff that is truly called to the ministry of hospitality. By serving on the Procter Board I hope to help ensure that the Procter Center continues to be a very special ministry for all who use and enjoy and pray and play there. Serving on the Procter Board seems to me the way God is calling me back into ministry within the diocese.